There was a time when the Loudoun County, Virginia, shelter was no place for a little dog, even one described as “lovey, “wiggly,” and “gentle.” In 2009, Animal Rescue of Tidewater sued the pound over its breed discriminatory policy of automatic killing. Counsel for plaintiffs summarized the consequences of being a dog who looked a certain way at the hands of Loudoun County pound staff: Your Honor, on June 19, 2007, a 12-week-old brown and…
Ah, that deceit should steal such gentle shape, And with a virtuous vizor hide deep vice! — King Richard III Today, the single greatest cause of death for healthy dogs and cats in the United States remains deliberate killing at the local animal shelter. But as I argued over 10 years ago in Redemption: The Myth of Pet Overpopulation & The No Kill Revolution in America, they are not killed because of pet overpopulation. The…
Almost weekly, my Google alert is telling me of another community that has achieved No Kill because it reached a “90% live release rate.” Using that benchmark, Best Friends recently announced that we now have 4,000 of them in the U.S. But is it true? Unfortunately, it is not. First and foremost, a 10% rate of killing is not No Kill, as I explain below. But even if it was, Best Friends is relying on…
Just Released Statistics Show That Once Again, Thousands of Dogs, Cats, and Farmed Animals Were Killed By or Because of PETA A photo of a dead puppy given to me in 2015 by a PETA employee on condition of anonymity. The employee stated that PETA kills healthy and adoptable animals. January 31 marked the last day “shelters” in Virginia could submit statistics for 2018 to the Virginia Department of Agriculture & Consumer Services. And…
From the No Kill Advocacy Center: Los Angeles Board of Animal Services Commission Department of Animal Services Ani.Commission@lacity.org Dear Members of the Commission: The General Manager of Los Angeles Animal Services is proposing to eliminate the policy that dogs in late-term pregnancy be spayed before they are released. As she noted in a 2013 memo to the Commission, “The spaying of late-term pregnant dogs results in puppies being born by the equivalent of a…
Dear Friends and Colleagues: As many of you know, PETA demanded in court that I reveal the names of PETA employees who spoke to me on condition of anonymity about PETA’s killing of animals. The information they provided was used to corroborate newspaper articles, on the record sources, government documents received under the Public Records Act, testimony and information from civil and criminal cases against PETA, videotape evidence, and admissions of killing by PETA…
A dog available for adoption from the Humane Society of Fremont County, one of the brightest spots in Colorado’s constellation of progressive sheltering communities. A new study analyzing 15 years of intake and outcome data for animal shelters in Colorado finds that adoptions dramatically increased, killing dramatically declined, and Colorado could easily be a No Kill state. The study identified several programs of the No Kill Equation, such as community cat sterilization, public relations and…
These kittens, burned in a wildfire, are recovering under the care of a local SPCA. Others were not so “lucky.” (Warning: very graphic images). And in California, a Federal Court has found that one of the leading cause of wildfires — and its resulting destruction of both animal habitat and animal life — is PG&E’s shoddy equipment. “Cal Fire has determined that PG&E caused 18 wildfires in 2017, 12 of which Cal Fire referred for…
At a hearing yesterday, the Los Angeles Board of Animal Commissioners was asked to reconsider a city pound policy where “dogs in late-term pregnancy are spayed and their puppies are put to death.” According to the head of Los Angeles Animal Services, “The spaying of late-term pregnant dogs results in puppies being born by the equivalent of a C-section. They are able to survive on their own, but these puppies are immediately put to death…
Snowball arrived at Los Angeles Animal Services full-term and was going to be spayed and her puppies killed under City policy. Her puppies were granted a reprieve. Others are not so lucky. Five years ago, Los Angeles Animal Services General Manager Brenda Barnette appealed to the Los Angeles Board of Animal Services Commissioners “to eliminate the policy that all dogs — including those in late-term pregnancy — must be spayed before they are released.” ‘The…